Serge Teulon

Filming in Florida in the Summer is a bitch! Not only is it hot and humid, but the rain comes and goes unpredictably and clouds go in and out. My exposure would jump 3 stops every time the clouds broke...

That is called "Filming in the UK 24/7" (apart from hot and humid of course)

Good stills btw!

I like the fact that zacuto's definition between Pro and Consumer is adjustability. So neat!!!

:lol: LOL!!!

To the ppl that use their meters......what asa do you set your meter at?

I've now shot a 3 promos and 1 ad with the red. When testing I used my meter (set at 320asa) but I found the images to be underexposed.

So I decided to (still with my meter was present) rely more on the histogram + traffic lights and the images have come out exactly right.

Has anyone had a similar experience?

Hey Brad,

You're right, it was a shame that it turned out the way that it did.

I'm a firm believer in collaboration. As a matter of fact, collaborating is one of the big kicks I get out of my job. And I completely agree, on features and dramas, that it does save loads of time to employ an op.

Although I said that I would feel reluctant to taste that water again, I would not refuse to ever work with an op. I will however, next time, take more time and consideration on who I pick to work with.

A couple of weeks ago I dp'd a promo where we employed a steadicam operator. He was the sole operator as we were shooting 1 camera @ 100fps throughout the whole promo.

That was my first experience as a dp not operating. I absolutely hated it!

It didn't help as well that the Op was a complete twat...

It's left a sour taste in my mouth and one experience that I feel very reluctant to repeat.

99.9% of the time I always operate my gigs. I feel that alongside my lighting, (like everyone else, I'm sure) I offer my own touch in framing and connection with the actor(s).

I understand and really appreciate that there are some amazing operators out there (I certainly met a couple when I ac'd) but I will always want to operate, as I get so much from it.

And that is a thought that I seem to encounter more often than not when I chat to other dp's.

So Glynn, although nothing is impossible I'm not really sure if solely being an operator is going to get any easier......

This as always, is only my thoughts......

If I got a £1 for everytime that I've said "director of photography", followed by the reply of "HUH??? :blink: ", I would be a very rich man.

Outside of the industry I always just say cameraman. Inside I say DoP.

Completely understand why but it's very, very sad :(

. This is the kind of job where if you start making demands about a solid schedule or a contract or like, more rolls of 1" black tape, you just look like a douchebag or a primadonna. So I've been rolling with the punches....I use my own tape once in a while since it won't kill me, I come in to work when they tell me to work, and that's that.

 

I think a year ago I would've been bitching a lot more, but what's the point? Work is work. This job is giving me some real insights into how I really want to be as an AC. I don't want to waste time complaining about how clueless production is. They always will be; that's just the way it goes. I can't expect everyone to be on my wavelength all the time and need to be prepared to speak up for the camera crew. I want to be able to walk into any job with no preconceived ideas of how it's "supposed" to be, and just GET THE SHOT. Because at the end of the day, I really think that's all that matters. And in thinking that way, suddenly nothing bothers me. Metric marks don't bother me. Rain doesn't bother me. An excitable director wanting to rush to the next setup doesn't bother me.

Up until you get the above "enlightment" our industry can come across as dragging a ball-and-chain coupled with a sado-masochistic feeling of enjoyment.

It's so important to understand what the job entails. Only then do you really feel that you can make a clear and concise choice.

You're in the zone Annie ;)

....was this ridiculously epic Italian food place in which I consumed a plate of pasta approximately the size of my head, and then a shot of espresso, of course. Weee! Til next time...

:lol: :lol:

Thank god for pasta!!

You tell a story well Annie....great post

Hi Justin,

I would take out the shot of the 2 guys in the white studio. It just doesn't bear well on the rest of your reel, which I think is of a good standard.

Unlike Tom, I actually really like the b&w shot of the girl facing the mirror and I also think that the lightbulb shot is a nice arty shot.

As you said, all the work on there was done whilst at film school. You had loads of limitations and hurdles to leap over.....

IMO I think you have something good enough to show, for ppl to give you the breaks that you need to do more indulgent jobs.

Hi Jean,

Is this the first time you've shot with the 5dII?

What are you appreciating most and also what are you're dislikes about it?

I recently rejected the idea of using the 5dmkII on a commmercial that I'm shooting soon, which is going to be quite challenging...

It just seems nuts to use a camera that requires the crew (incl myself) to completely re-adjust the way they work to use a camera.

Like Tom has said, it would be great to see some images of your shoot...

I hope it keeps running smoothly and successfully.

Hey,

Has anyone ever shot greenscreen outdoors in the UK or in similar inconsistent weather conditions?

I've got a shoot coming up which requires this and I would really appreciate any previous experiences to take on....

Cheers

Hey Brad,

you are partly right.

I spoke to a mate of mine, who knows far more than me about how the internet functions, and he explained that it is all to do with how many links you have on your website.

The internet 'BOTS' use that as a credit to position your site near to the number 1 link after the search.

What annoys me the most is that my site doesn't get first pick but my facebook and other links, including posts from this forum, take precedence.

Tim, I don't know how much control you have on this....but is there any chance that you could stop that?

I understand that its a good way to advertise this forum but maybe something that just states our membership on here would suffice.

Hi Robin,

There are plenty of studios that will paint their cyc in whatever colour you want. You could therefore speak to your producer and see if you could move on....I'm sure the current studio might think twice about their refusal.

Otherwise if that is too expensive, I would just hire a some greenscreen material that covers the same area as your shot requires.

If the hero is your main character, I wouldn't ponder on any compromises in this scenario. It's just not worth it....

Until now, I wasn't actually aware of Carradine comitting suicide..... :(

I've never been to Hollywood or worked in Hollywood. But I can imagine its as tough a place as I always hear that it is.

My notion is that its a dream maker but also a dream breaker.....

I'm sure his suicide had nothing to do with Hollywood and more to do with his personal life.

RIP Carradine

Hi Daniel,

Very professional.

There were no major differences with anything that is broadcasted on tv (apart from budget). Nice key, fill, kick, colours, levels of intensity and good shadow control.

Did you play around with moving the mic shadow off her chest?

Really good job

When I shot a similar scene I just established a level of fill, with a bounced light near camera and, as Chris has pointed out, let the strobe go a 1-2 stops over.

The important thing is that unless you want a black-exposed-black look, then you need to get the level of the fill right so that it is believable. You've got artistic licence up until a certain point...

Also, I didn't worry so much about getting the shutter and strobe timing, as it gave me in, varied moments, different effects.

Which in my case, added to the feel of being in a rave/club.

But its Hollywood......and anything can happen in Hollywood! ;)

Hi Tess,

Apart from what you've already been told.

You can find loads of agents details on the cinematography society sites for the respective countries. Such as BSC, ASC, AFC etc etc....

Here is a link to agents on the BSC site

Also if you're looking for someone specific, just google someone's name.

90% of the time it throws up their website...unless they haven't used their name as their address.

I've got a box full of gaffer/camera tape leftovers I bought from a woman AC. There's a roll of hot pink in it. I think she may have been using it to tape over the mouth of anyone on the set who was sexually inappropriate.

:P

I bet on the sets that she worked on, there were a few sparks with their mouths taped up......

Hey Paul and David,

Thanks for your answers.

That's interesting....just from the fact that the cameras were hand cranked makes it inevitable that film makers would've accidently stumbled upon over and under cranked effects.

That means that the projectionist had a massive role to play in the showing of the film. Get it right and it works, get it wrong and.....

Although I do wonder whether it's possible that the projectionist was told when to speed up and slow down due to the operator not being able to keep a constant speed on set...

Hey,

The other day the eldest asked me when was slow motion first used in films....I thought that was an excellent question, to which I didn't know the answer.

Does anyone know?

Looking forward to finding out.....

I think I can remember him saying that he didn't use any filtration and that colours & textures were complete led by lighting and art direction. To then take it into a DI.....I think that is pretty much how he likes to shoot through all of his films.

Have you seen the restaurant scene in "Hannah"? Woody and Carlo used the camera's travelling around in a circle to solidify the character relationships between the sisters. It's done so subtly that it doesn't call attention to itself. Rather than shoot conventional coverage they allowed the action to flow from actor to actor without hardly any cuts. What cuts are there excepting one coverage style cut are apparently because the layout of the restaurant didn't allow for track all the way around the table, there's a half wall behind one of sister's chairs.

Hi Hal,

I haven't unfortunately watched "Hannah" yet...but from what you say I will do now.

Cheers ;)

,,,,,and it was my first Lynch-film. I didn't understand squat......

:lol: